Starting and stopping mechanism



July 7, 1931.` J. L. PERKINS ET AL 1,813,254

STARTING AND STOPPING MECHANISM Filed Sept. 20, 1928 f ATTORNEY.

Patented July 7, 1931 j UNijrED 1 s'rn'rlss L. PERKINS, OF WEST SPRINGFIELD, AND I-IIRAM D'. CROFT, OF SPRINGFIELD,

JULIAN PATENT OFFICE MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNORS TO PERKINS MACHINE AND GEAR COMPANY, -OF '1 WEST SII?RINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, A l' CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS STARTING AND s'rorrrlve MEGHANISM Application filedseptemberv 2o, 192s..l serial No. 307,260. Y

washing machine wherein there is drivingl mechanism, usually receiving power from an electric motor, an oscillatory tub, and a wringer, and it is desired that the tub remain stationary while the wringer is in operation.

This starting and stopping mechanism affords means for setting in motion the tub of a wash- `ing machine, and causingthe same to 'stop moving, at will, without disturbingthe mechanism which drives both said tub Vand the as sociated wringer. t j

Although our starting and stopping mecha-y :nism is designed more particularly for wash- 'ing machines, the same is applicable to other machines wherein there are parts requiring independent motive control. y f j Other objects and kadvantages will appear in the course of the following'description, lVe attain the objects and secure the ad'- vantages of our invention by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which :.7 Figurelisa top plan,with parts broken away and"nsection,fof a Washing machine equipped with starting andstopping mechanismfwhich embodies a practical form of our invention, and, Fig. 2, aside elevation in .partial section of said machine and mechanism. j f

Similar. reference characters designate similar parts throughout the several views.

Theparts of thewashing machine illus#y trated in the drawings are briefly described as follows:

A transmission supported by a foot 4. Secured to the end of case is represented at 1.` This case has at one end two oblique arms 2A the case 1 where the arms 2 are located which is therearend of said case and of the machine, is an electric motor 5, said motor being be-l tween said arms and the Wheels 8. The case 1 has ajcover 6. Journaled in a bearing 7 in the front side of and in a bearing 8 within theA case 1 is a horizontal shaft 9 on which is mounted and secured a worm 10. The shaft 9 extends beyond the outer end of the bearing 7 and has mounted on and secured to the pro-1 truding terminal a'pulley v11. The motor 5 has a shaft 12 projecting behind the outer terminal Yofv the `shaft 9,' and on which is mounted and secured apulleyV 13. A belt' 14 connects the pulleys 11 and 18, and the worm 1() is driven from the'motor 5 through the, medium ofthe shaft 12, said pulleys and saidl belt, and the shaft 9. A` Y Adjacent tothe front end of the case 1 is a vertical socket 15 for the foot 4, and to provide a bearing for a` worm-Wheel 16. The

worm-wheel .16 intermeshes with the worm 10. Rising from the cover 6 above the socket 15 is a wringer column 17 j. A' vertical shaft 18 has its lower terminal securedto the worm,-l lwheel16` by which said shaft 4is drivenj;y The shaft 18 extends upwardly through the'col-fA umn17, and is the driving shaft'for the Awringer (not shown). "The lower terminal of the column 17 is received in and supported` by a flange 19 mounted yon and rigidly lconnected with the'cover 6.k A horizontal pin 20 extends from the interior ofthe kcolumn 17 through said lcolumn .and the lflange 19 and projects outside of said flange, said pin being at. right-angles to the vertical plane in .which are located'the axes of the `sha'ftl and a shaft'23. Thefprojecting part of thel pin 20 rison the same side of the machine as are the v projecting parts of the motor and worm shafts, and is apart of the stopping and lstarting mechanism.

Thecase'l andthe cover 6 adjacent to their Arear yends arerespectively provided with unl '-derfand upper bearings 21 and 22 for the shaft j 23, andmounted on and secured to said shaft j betweensaid bearings is a pinion `24; Mount# ed on andA secured to the/shaft 23 at the upper terminal is a hubl 25 of a holder 26 for atub (not shown).

ausl

The worm-wheel 16 is provided on top with an eccentric 27, encircling which is a ring 28. The ring 28 is an integral part of a rack 29 which extends rearwardly from said ring into position to engage the pinion 24, the teeth of said rack being on the front or forward edge thereof.

It will now be seen that, when the motor 5 is in operation, the shafts 9 and `18` are constantly rotated, and the rack 29 is constantly reciprocated,the reciprocating motion being imparted to said rack by the eccentric 27.

Loosely mounted on theifiangelQ, and supported by the cover 6, is a. hub 30, from which extend radially a handle 31 and ana-rm 32, said handle and arm being somewhat less than ninety degrees apart, andthe former extending over the front end and the latter toward the back side of the cover 6. The top of the hub 30 is cut away to form a recess 33 into which thepin 2O projects. 1Thus thepin 20 holds the hub 30 down on the cover 6, and limits the amount of rotation permitted said hub on the. flange 19, by being in the paths of the ends of the recess 33. Theffree end ofthe arm 32 is thickened and rounded substantially as shown at'34.

Journaled in a bearing in theibottom of the case 1, and in a bearing 36 inthe to of the cover 6, is a'vertical rock shaft 37. PThe shaft 37 is behind the aforesaid vertical plane in which the axes of the shafts 18 and 23 are located, but nearer to said second-named than to said first-named shaft. A rod 38 has its rear end rigidly connected with the upper terminal of the shaft 37 which terminal is above the cover 6, and said rod extends to- Ward the 4front end of the machine vinto the path of the arm 32. Rigidly attached .to the shaft`37, Within the case 1,`is a rocker arm 39 which extends tow-ard the rear end ofthe machine, and is provided witha roll 40, said roll having a shaft 41 journaled in said arm at theback endithereof. The rear terminal of the arm 39 is bifurcated to receive 'the roll .40.

The hub 30 with its handle 31 and arm 32, and the rock shaft 37 with its rod 38 and arm 39, together with the oscillatory rack 29,

.comprise stopping and starting mechanism Afor the shaft 23 which oscillates the tub holder 26, and the parts and members of said mechanism are constructed, proportioned, and arranged to yfunction andbring about the .results described below.

Then the hub 30 Vis positioned with the left-hand end of the recess 33 in engagement with theipin 20,-the outer endo'fthe arm 32 is in Contact with the free'terminal of the rod 38, and the roll 40 is causedto bear-'hard "the pin 20, the arm 32 is moved into a posi- `tion to releasethe rod 38,'when'the action of the eccentric'27'on the ring :28 partiallyroltates said ringfin'theidirectionto:swing the rack 29 out of engagement with the pinion *24,thelarm-39andsaid rod rocking on and with the shaft 37 as said rack moves the roll andthere'arend o'fsaid arm outwardly and said rod, throngh the medium of said shaft, inwardly at the free terminal. lAn

outward swing is impartedto the rack 29because the eccentric 27 is rotated to the`1e`ft.

When the rod 38 is swung inwardly,`the free terminal portion thereof is received against a iattenedpart of the'hub 30, which fiattened part forms a rest or stop which appears at 42. rl'Chis stop Ilimits the` outward movements of the rocker arm `39 and the rack 29.

lThe rack 29 is now entirely .clear ofthe pinion 24, and retained'in contact with the roll 40'by the action of the revolving eccentric 27.

The instant disposition of thepartsand members ofthe. starting and stopping mechanism is indicated 'by the broken or dotted lines in'the first view.

vWhen the handle 31 is returnedto'itsformer position,the hub3`0 -is rotated vor partially rotated, in the opposite or reverse direction, until the left-hand end ofthe'recess '33 encounters thepin'20, and said'hubcarries with it the arm 432 which engagestherod'38 and swings said rod outwardly, withthe result that the arm 3'9 is swung inwardl-y,'and, through the medium ofthe roll 40,lm`ovesthe rack 29 into engagement again with'the pinion 24, thus once more setting in motion'the tub holder 26, provided the driving'mechanism be in action. f

The-rack 29, in swinging into and out'o'f engagement with the pinion 24, rocks on `and with'its ring 28 as the'latteriis then'partiially rotated on the eccentric L27. YThis *istrue whether or notthe Veccentric'be inmo'tion.

The arm 32 mu'stbe ofsuiicient `length -to cause the rack 29 to be moved into full engagement with the pinion 24,'and,'prefer ably, the rod 38 is somewhat resilient so that lthe same, whenmoved outwardly'at'its "free terminal by the arm 32 to the full extent, causes the roll 40 to be'held'against the rack 29 with some little force. While'therod`38 is held outwardly to the full eXtentby'th-e larm 32, :the pinion 24 must be'osc'illated by lthe rack 29 if inmotion.

When ythe left-hand end ofthe recess 33 tis in engagement with the stoppin 20, whereby further rotation to the left of the hub 30 is prevented, the arm 32 and that part of the rod 38 that is between said arm and the shaft 29 form an acute-angle with each other, consequently said arm and said rod can not become accidently disengaged, as might be the case-if they formed a right-angle with each other. In other words, the arm 32 is moved past the center and into locking position relative to the rod 38, when the hub 30 is rotated or partially rotated to the left as far as the pin 2O permits.

More or less change in the shape, size, construction, and arrangement of some or all of the parts of this mechanism may be made, without departing from kthe spirit of our invention, or exceeding the scope of what is claimed.

We claim:

l. In mechanism of the class described, a rotatable member, an eccentric, an oscillatory member driven by said eccentric, and adapted to be swung thereon into and out of engagement with said rotatable member, and means to actuate said oscillatory member into such engagement, and permit it to become disengaged, said eccentric rotating in a direction tending to actuate said oscillatory member out of engagement with said rotatable member.

2. The combination, in mechanism of the class described, with a pinion, and an eccentric driven rack adapted to be swung on the eccentric into and out of engagement with said pinion, of a rocker arm in operative position relative to said rack, and adapted to actuate said rack into engagement with said pinion, and to release it from such engagement, and yielding means to actuate said rocker arm in the direction to force said rack into engagement with said pinion.

3. The combination, in mechanism of the 1 class described, with a pinion, and an eccentric driven rack adapted to be swung on the eccentric into and out of engagement with said pinion, of an oscillatory arm, a rock shaft, a rocker arm carried by said shaft in operative position relative to said rack, and a rod carried by said shaft in operative position relative to said oscillatory arm, whereby the latter when moved in one direction causes said rod and said rocker arm to move said rack into engagement with said pinion, and when moved in the other direction permits said rack to be disengaged from said pinion.

4. The combination, in mechanism of the class described, with a pinion, and an eccentric driven rack adapted to be swung on the eccentric into and-out of engagement with said pinion, of a rotatable hub providedwith a handle and an arm, a rock shaft, a rocker arm carried by said shaft in operative position relative to said rack, and a rod carried by said shaft in the pathv of said first-named arm, whereby the movement of said handle in one direction causes said'` rack to engagey .said pinion, and movementof said' handle in thexother direction permits said rack to be-l come disengaged from said pinion.

5. The combination, in mechanism of the class described, with` a pinion, an eccentricr driven rack adapted toY be 'swung on the' eccentric int'o and'out of engagement with said pinion, and a supporting member providedA with4 a projection, of a hub, provided with a handlefand an arm, mounted onsaid member, and cut awayy to receive said projection, whereby the rotary movement of said hub on said member is limited, a rock shaft, a rocker arm carried by lsaid shaft in operative position relative to said rack, and a rod carriedV gaged, and a supporting member, of a hub v provided with a handle and an arm mounted for rotation on said supporting member, a rock shaft, a rocker arm carried by said shaft in operative position relative to said rack, and a rod carried by said shaft in the path of said first-named arm, whereby the movement of said handle in one direction 'r causes said rack to engagesaid pinion, and movement of said-handle in the other direction permits said rack to become disengaged from said pinion.

7. The combination, in mechanism of the class described, with a pinion, and an eccentric driven rack adapted to be swung on the eccentric into and out of engagement with said pinion, of an oscillatory arm, a rock shaft, a rocker arm `carried by said shaft in i operative position relative to said rack, and a resilient rod carried by said shaft in operative position relative to said oscillatory arm,

whereby the latter when moved in one direction causes said rod and said rocker arm to move said rack into and yieldingly hold it in engagement with said pinion, and when moved in the other direction permits said rack to be disengaged from said pinion.

8. The combination in mechanism of the class described, of a rotatable shaft and an oscillatable shaft, an eccentric on said rotatable shaft and a pinion on said oscillatable shaft, a member on said eccentric adapted to be reciprocated thereby and having teeth for engaging said pinion, an oscillatable lever for holding said rack in engagement with said pinion, a rodk extending from said lever towards said rotatable shaft and a second lever oscillatable axially of said rotatable shaft `for lengaging and A'nvinging said -zrod whereby said first-named lever may :befoperated by the latter foriengaging saidfreki-Wit-h said pinion.

9. The combination .in mechanism :nf the class described of, a rotatable shaft .having an eccentric fixed `thereon, an oscillatable Sha-ft having a `pinion fixed thereon, 'armember in rotatable engagement with said eccentric having a toothed end fforfengagng said pinion and adapted to swing `towards .and away from said pinion, alever Amounted for swinging movements .for engaging folie toothed end of said member and swinging the same into engagement With saifllpinion a rod extending from said llever towards sai rotatable shaft,.a `second lever arranged =for swinging movements axially of said. shafbfor swinging said irstnamed -rod and lever; and a stop'associated with said second lever Ifo'r en gagingy said rod :tolimit the relative Inlovement thereof.

JULIAN L. PERKINS.

HIRAM D. CR-OFT.

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